Air Products to Acquire Natural Gas-To-Syngas Facility in Uzbekistan

Air Products has signed an investment agreement with the Government of the Republic of Uzbekistan and Uzbekneftegaz JSC (UNG) to acquire, own and operate a natural gas-to-syngas processing facility in Qashqadaryo Province, Uzbekistan for 1 billion dollars, said Process-worldwide.

The natural gas-to-syngas industrial complex is an integral part of state-owned energy company Uzbekneftegaz JSC’s multi-billion gas-to-liquid (GTL) facility?one of the most advanced energy plants in the world?producing 1.5 million tonnes per year of high value-add synthetic fuels for domestic use and potentially export.

Under the purchase agreement?which is fully aligned with Air Products’ leading on-site business model?Air Products will acquire, own and operate two large-scale air separation units, two large-scale auto-thermal reforming units, and a hydrogen production unit within the Uzbekistan GTL complex and supply oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen and syngas under a long-term, take-or-pay/fixed fee contract to UNG. UNG will supply the feedstock natural gas and utilities and offtake all products.

Commenting on the agreement, Air Products’ Chairman, President and CEO Seifi Ghasemi said, “Air Products is proud to be deploying our knowledge, experience and technology to help nations around the world access and maximize their abundant energy sources more sustainably. With this strategic acquisition in Uzbekistan, a high-growth environment underpinned by strong government support, we will bring our best-in-class operational and supply competencies to bear. This will enable UNG to seamlessly produce low-cost, high-purity fuels that enable the Republic to meet its growing energy production and societal needs. We look forward to building on this long-term, sustainable partnership and are excited about future opportunities in Uzbekistan and the Central Asia region.”

“Cooperation between the Uzbekistan GTL plant and Air Products is of great importance as it represents a partnership that promises to unleash the enormous potential of the energy sector of the Republic of Uzbekistan,” commented Sidikov Bakhodirjon Bakhromovich, the Chairman of the Board of Uzbekneftegaz JSC.

“Using a combination of Uzbekneftegaz's experience in processing natural gas into high value-added products and Air Products' leadership in the implementation of mega projects, we are starting to work together to achieve common creative goals, such as increasing production efficiency, reducing the final cost of products and reduction of harmful emissions. We are optimistic about the benefits this cooperation will bring both to the company and our Republic as a whole.”

We remind, Air Products has plans to develop two new nitrogen plants in Malaysia as well as extend its pipeline network in the country’s Penang region. The move will enable the company to strengthen its presence in the nation and also meet the market demands.

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Sulzer has recently signed an agreement with major lactic acid (LA) producer, Jindan New Biomaterials (Jindan), to enable the production of polylactic acid (PLA), a biobased plastic, said Process-worldwide.

Jindan will utilize Sulzer’s licensed PLA technology at its new manufacturing plant in Henan Province to produce up to 75’000 tonnes of PLA per year, mainly to be used for food packaging, molded goods and fibers production. Sulzer will also provide extensive service support to ensure a seamless start.

Jindan’s new bioplastic facility will produce PLA in a variety of grades to support the expanded use of bioplastics in several sectors in China, including the textile and package manufacturing industries. To enable the company’s transition towards more sustainable, circular practices, Sulzer Chemtech will design and supply its key proprietary PLA technology, while further providing extensive engineering and technical support and field services as the manufacturer commences operations.

Shi Congliang, President of Jindan New Biomaterial, added: “By investing in Sulzer’s PLA solutions, we are taking key, strategic steps to advance our competitiveness in the booming biopolymer industry and drive the use of greener plastics. Thanks to its comprehensive expertise in the PLA value chain and all the stages involved, Sulzer Chemtech is an extremely valuable partner. We look forward to installing the equipment and starting-up our enhanced operations.”

We remind, Sulzer advanced separation technology will enable end-of-life plastics recycling at Indaver’s first plastic depolymerization plant currently under construction in Antwerp, Belgium. The new Plastics2Chemicals (P2C) plant will drive polymer circularity by using Sulzer separation technology to reclaim and purify 30,000 tpy of plastic waste. The resulting pure chemical feedstock can then be reused in manufacturing.

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LG Chem recently announced that it has started construction of its fourth carbon nanotube (CNT) plant at its Daesan Complex, 80 kilometers southwest of Seoul. LG Chem’s CNT 4 Plant is slated for operation in 2025 and will contribute to doubling LG Chem’s annual CNT production capability to 6,100 tons, said Process-worldwide.

Prior to this, LG Chem’s 1,200-tons CNT 3 Plant in Yeosu was also recently put into full operation, enabling LG Chem to secure a total production of 2,900 tons/year, adding on to the existing 1,700 tons.

LG Chem continuously expanding its CNT production capacity to gain a strong competitive advantage in the global CNT market which is rapidly evolving around electric vehicle (EV) battery materials. LG Chem has been operating CNT plants since 2017, starting from 500-ton productions at its CNT Plant 1, and is building new plants every year since 2020 to meet growing demands.

Thanks to the company’s fluidized bed reactor technology, production lines at all four LG Chem’s CNT plants can produce up to 600 tons on a yearly basis, demonstrating the highest single-line capacity in the world.

“With the nation’s largest CNT production capacity, we will continue building a strong competitive advantage in the battery materials sector and actively explore new business opportunities by moving faster than our competitors,” said Noh Kug-lae, President of LG Chem’s Petrochemical Business.

We remind, the Seoul Metropolitan Government is partnering with domestic petrochemical companies to begin a pilot project for recycling plastic waste materials using thermal pyrolysis technology. GS Caltex Corp., HD Hyundai Oilbank Co., LG Chem Ltd. And SK Geocentric Co have signed the business agreement with the Seoul city government. Plastic waste will be collected by district offices and be shipped to the petrochemical companies who will then use the thermal pyrolysis process to produce thermal pyrolysis oil.

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Toray Industries has recently announced that its marketing & sales subsidiary, Toray Resins Europe (called TREU) has established a recycling process for glass-fiber-reinforced polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) resin waste from injection molding processes, said Process-worldwide.

TREU created its process by leveraging proprietary compounding technology in collaboration with tolling partner MKV Kunststoffgranulate, a compounding company based in Beselich, Germany, that specializes in recycling engineering & high-performance plastics. Such resin has 50 % recycled content and retains at least 90 % of the mechanical strength that injection grades from original materials deliver.

SKZ – Das Kunststoff-Zentrum, has calculated and verified that PPS made with this recycling process can deliver a carbon footprint that is around 45 % lower than that of original PPS. The calculation was conducted based on the international LCA standards ISO 14040, ISO 14044 and the standard ISO 14067 ‘Carbon footprint of products’. SKZ, also known as the German Plastics Center, is a leading plastics testing and research institution based in Wurzburg.

We remind, Toray Industries, Inc., announced that it has developed a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) film that combines excellent applicability and adhesion for water-based and solvent-free coatings and can eliminate solvent-derived carbon-dioxide emissions. The company looks to produce the film at a domestic plant by end-March 2024 to help popularize eco-friendly film products for which decarbonization during manufacturing is desirable. These items include release, adhesive, printing, packaging, and automotive films.

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Austrian energy and chemicals company OMV is not planning to offload its stake in the petrochemicals subsidiary Borealis, reported Reuters, citing OMV CEO Alfred Stern.

Currently, OMV owns a 75% stake in Borealis while state-run Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) holds the remaining 25% stake. Adnoc also owns a 25% stake in OMV.

In 2022, Adnoc unveiled a growth strategy involving a substantial investment of USD150bn (Dh550.88bn) between 2023 and 2027. The plan encompassed the establishment of a new division with a focus on the energy sector, including chemicals.

The announcement triggered speculation regarding Adnoc’s potential acquisition of OMV’s stake in Borealis, which has operations in Belgium, Germany and France, among others.

Stern was quoted by Reuters on the sidelines of an energy conference in New York as saying: “We are not going to sell the Borealis stake.”

OMV is expected to fulfil its gas supply contracts in Austria despite a halt in supplies from Russia’s Gazprom, Stern said.

“There has been a massive rearrangement of supply chains,” he added.

OMV anticipates refining margins to average between USD10 and USD15 per barrel. The margins could reduce below that level, Stern noted.

“For the year [it] will be more toward the lower end, but we are looking if we are going to fall out the bottom end of this potentially,” Stern said.

Adnoc acquired a 24.9% stake in OMV from Mubadala Investment Company to raise its holding in European petrochemicals maker Borealis and petrochemicals company Borouge.

We remind, Borealis announces that it is using the occasion of the Plastics Recycling Show Europe (PRSE) in May to highlight a new monomaterial pouch containing over 95% PP and designed for recycling.

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